The present invention relates generally to multimedia conferencing, and more particularly to a method and system for remotely modifying presentations in a multimedia conference.
Use of internet-related networks (e.g. the World Wide Web) for multi-media conferencing presentations has increased dramatically in recent years. A conference participant may direct another participant to information stored on a computer network (e.g. web pages). U.S. Pat. No. 5,944,791 describes an example of a presentation using the web. To facilitate the conference it is desirable for a conference participant (e.g., a conference moderator) to be able to initiate and direct other participants"" receipt of such information (so-called collaborative web browsing). To do this, the moderator must send command data, such as uniform resource locator (URL) data to other participants"" digital processing system (DPS) to direct the other participants to a particular web page. The web page may contain embedded Javascript that causes the display of the web page to be modified in a predetermined way. For example, the embedded Javascript could contain a timeline that allows the conference participants to view some of the information on the web page and after some time view additional or different information of the same web page. The Javascript is downloaded with the hypertext markup language (HTML), not necessarily embedded with it. A library of Javascript is downloaded to the participant DPS""s cache memory. The moderator can then access the Javascript necessary to cause a predefined desired action, and cause that Javascript to be embedded into a web page which a participant is viewing. FIG. 1 shows a method by which the moderator causes the modification of a displayed web page of a participant. The method 100 of FIG. 1 begins with operation 105, in which a moderator DPS in a web conference directs a participant to a web page. In operation 110 the participant is directed to a web page and receives a library of Javascript along with the HTML. In operation 115 the moderator issues commands that invoke the Javascript received at the participant""s DPS. This Javascript causes a predefined action such as a further portion of the display becoming visible or an icon appearing. The Javascript is considered static in that once the HTML and Javascript are downloaded for a given web page the associated library of Javascript cannot be modified. The moderator can invoke selected Javascript from the library to cause desired actions on the display of the participant, but the moderator cannot change the library of available Javascript. The moderator of a web conference may direct a participant to a web page and then wish to modify what the participant is viewing beyond the Javascript transmitted with the HTML page. Currently, one way to do this would be to retransmit the web page with different embedded Javascript (i.e. a new web page). This method is depicted in FIG. 2. The method 200 depicted in FIG. 2 begins at operation 205 in which the moderator of a web conference directs a participant of the same web conference to a web page. In operation 210 the participant receives the static Javascript from the web page. This static Javascript is invoked by the moderator in operation 215 to cause predefined actions at the participant""s DPS. This process would have a detrimental affect on the web conference because transmitting the new page would cause delay and a disruption of visual continuity as the participant""s display screen would blank out while the new page was loaded.
Other methods of effecting a modification of a web page (e.g. mouse rollover or web page annotation overlay) are not part of an overall web conferencing scheme. The annotation overlay method of modifying a web page is depicted in FIG. 3. The method 300 begins at operation 305 in which a first web page 306 is received at a DPS. In operation 310 while the first web page 306 is being presented, a second web page 311 is caused to be received. The second web page 311 could be caused to be received by the transmitter of the first web page, by the receiver of the first web page, or by another entity. In operation 315 the second web page 311 lays over the first web page 306 and the presentation of the first web page 306 appears as modified web page 316 (i.e. the visual effect is that of modifying the first web page 306). The web page annotation over lay method depicted in FIG. 3 is analogous to placing a Post-it note on a document. In both cases the document itself is not changed, only its presentation.
For the foregoing reasons there is a need for the moderator of a web conference to be able to modify the Javascript/HTML of a web page being viewed by a remote participant without reloading the web page.
A method is described for modifying presentation information. The method is implemented on a digital processing system. Data is selected. A first digital processing system issues directive commands to at least one other digital processing system, which is remote from the first digital processing system, causing the at least one other digital processing system to present the data. The at least one other digital processing system receives modification commands such that the data is modified. The data, being presented by the at least one other digital processing system, is modified without the at least one other digital processing system receiving the directive commands again.